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A new season always inspires me to do a little shopping and today I'm sharing some favorite new fall purchases. For a week now the new gold iPhone 6 Plus has been mine and I'm absolutely loving it! Since my illustrations are like my babies I chose one of my current favorites to use as my mobile wallpaper. I have to say she's been quite the conversation starter while traveling this weekend to live sketch a Vogue event in Chicago and back at a private VIP party in downtown Manhattan.

3. New beauty obsessions: Nirvana White rollerball by Elizabeth and James, Asos gold metal hair clip and Marc Jacobs liquid eyeliner. I pretty much love the entire MJ Beauty line and can't seem to stop adding to my collection but this felt brush tipped eyeliner pen is beyond perfection! One reason I may like it to much is that its a very similar tip to the Copic Markers I illustrate with.

This week my sketching tour with Vogue continues as I head to Chicago and you're invited! I'll be live-sketching custom fashion illustrations for Vogue and Clinique at Macy's on North Michigan Avenue. Guests who purchase Clinique's new Smart Serum will not only receive a custom fashion illustration of themselves but can also have it printed onto a custom smart phone cover.

The contract is signed, sealed and delivered, I'm officially signed on to illustrate four more Chloe by Design books for Capstone Publishing! To celebrate today I have a giveaway for the first four books of the series which came out about a month ago. To learn more about this series you can check out the book's video trailer and my last post about them from a few weeks ago when they were first released.

Today I have menswear illustrations I sketched for Will Taylor, aka. Mr. Bright Bazaar, who just so happens to be my best friend! Will collaborated with Ted Baker and chose his top A/W 2014 picks for a bright London photoshoot feature which I then interpreted into an illustration. In addition to working with my stylish bestie, I rarely collaborate with menswear brands so this was a fun project. We went with one full illustration and then individually highlighted some in flats. Flats are silhouettes of the garments which designers frequently use in house for pattern making, draping and line sheets. The flats I chose to draw are considered stylized flats because they're fully rendered in color and show the fabrics and textures. Back in college I always preferred stylized flats, as I'm not a technical person and liked a more organic look over a basic black and white line drawing. This eclectic collection translated well since it consists of quilting, luxe leathers, jersey and denim.

Ready to start your week off with more New York Fashion Week designer sketches? Today I've chosen a batch of classic black, white and neutral illustrations starting with Ella Moss and Jeffrey Dodd. Ella's sketch has a lovely light feel with a lot of texture and depth. I love how the pant pattern was rendered and the use of shading throughout the illustration. Jeffrey Dodd's illustration is much more stylized with a simplified and eccentric headless fashion figure but still clearly conveying the gown design.

The theme of Milly's 2015 spring collection is "organic opulence," which I think this sketch illustrates perfectly. It appears to have been drawn primarily in pen with touches of marker. The illustration has a quick and casual feel but dramatic showing a sheer full skirt and patterned vest.

Rachel Zoe's illustration is a different style than she's shown in recent past seasons (here for example.) This sketch is simplified mod black and white with a playful element in the kicked up foot and shaggy hair, showing the 1960's inspiration even in the figure illustration.

Last but not least is a graphic statement by Lela Rose of watercolored polka dots and florals inspired by a Japanese artist, Yayoi Kusama. Again its a bit of a simplified croqui (fashion figure,) but well rendered garments and unique in that the illustration took the polka dot pattern and successfully extended it into a washed out background.

It should be noted that none of these illustrations have faces. I know a lot of aspiring illustrators struggle with facial features and these are a few great examples of successful illustrations without any. The illustrations are all cohesive and none look unbalanced or unfinished.

New York Fashion Week kicked off two days ago and with it a slew of designer sketches were released as a teaser of what we can expect to see on in the collections. As usual I've combed through them and chosen some of my favorites to feature starting with Rebecca Minkoff (above.) Her sketches are consistently flawless and always at the top of my list with beautifully rendered fabrics, faces and hair, and overall the ideal fashion illustration proportions.

DNKY is much more whimsical and stylized but still clearly conveys the garment design. I love the fun touches of pink for the hair and that the illustrator chose a unique profile walking pose. The figure is exaggerated and long with the focus of the sketch is on the geometric dress pattern.

Next up are two different designers with similar illustrative styles, Ellessy and J.Crew. They both have a loose organic feel with minimal facial rendering and outlined in pen. You can clearly read the texture and fabrics but they both seem casually drawn with a light touch. I love the shadow on the Hellessy illustration, its something I've always admired in Audrey Schilt's Ralph Lauren illustrations.

Cynthia Steffe's illustration is another more stylized and fun one, similar to DKNY. It also reminds me of the Daily Candy sketches by Sujean Rim. (Maybe they commissioned her?) To me it appears the illustration is painted in light washes of watercolor without much line work. The sketch has a very young feel with minimal details but again, understandable garment rendering.

I've broken my picks up by color which today for part 1 here are dusty pinks, muted raspberries and slate blues. Check back tomorrow for another colorway and to see more New York Fashion Week Spring 2015 designer sketches.

Details of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's wedding last month have been released including this beautiful bridal sketch by Atelier Versace. Angelina's couture gown was not your typical Donatella Versace gown, it was a traditional design of ivory silk-satin with a gathered bust and full flared skirt. The real showstopper was in the adornment. In the sketch it simply looks like lace, but in actuality illustrations by their six children were embroidered over the elongated train and silk veil. It was like a sprinkling of colorful doodles all along her back. (Photo here, on my Famous Brides Pinterest board) I'm not so sure its something I would choose, however you can't argue that it isn't a unique and personal touch. I'd certainly be honored if someone adorned her wedding gown with my illustrations!